Uber Driver Drops Passengers Off At Airport, Then Returns to Their Home to Burglarize Them

We can remind ourselves that one can never be too careful, but the reality is that some individuals like to do terrible things. Unscrupulous, amoral, and whatever other adjectives you want to use.

That’s how you can perfectly describe the person that tried to burglarize his Uber customers’ house after dropping them off at the airport. He was caught on a security camera and scared off by an alarm.

Police in San Mateo, California state that the passengers were staying at an Airbnb rental and the Uber driver, Jackie Gordon Wilson, took them to San Francisco International Airport. He showed back up at the house attempting to rob it, but when security alarms frightened him off, he fled.

But he did not go home. Undeterred, he drove to a different part of the area and broke into a couple’s home in what looks to be broad daylight. Their Ring camera system captured footage of Wilson in action. The couple spoke to news outlets but did not want to show their faces on screen.

“Family heirlooms that I’m really, really hoping I can get back. . .They’re from my grandmother and go back all the way to the Holocaust. So, if that’s lost…To him that was just something for him to just pawn off. To me, that was a memory of my grandmother.”

After sharing the Ring footage online, the Airbnb owner chimed in and noted that Wilson drove for Uber and had tried to break into his house. That property owner verified who Wilson was with the tenants who identified him as their Uber driver. The info was shared with police.

The homeowners in this video urge people to reconsider if they want to use ridesharing services. While it is true that the drivers are often victims of crimes, more and more Lyft and Uber drivers have been accused of or caught doing crimes.

Safety tips for riders are posted, but questions are increasing about driver screening and the depth of background checks. Here’s the other thing to remember: these companies began as technology firms. They built apps for ridesharing.

Since they virtually started a new industry, it’s taken time for laws and regulations to catch up with how they do business. Someone once described the ridesharing economy as “hitchhiking with strangers.” On the one hand, it helps people who otherwise can’t drive themselves, but on the other, you never know the person who’s in the car with you.

Someone could be casing your digs or worse. Wilson has been arrested by San Mateo police at his home in Rancho Cordova, which is two hours away. Some of the items from the San Mateo robbery were recovered at his house.

Check out this video from CBS 5 to hear from the robbery victims and to learn how cops cracked the case.

After hearing this story, will you reconsider using a rideshare app? Have you ever had a bad ridesharing experience? Do you drive for one of these companies?